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Influencing Factors for the Acceptability of Accessing HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis via Community Pharmacies in Wales
Full text linkINTRODUCTION: HIV prevention methods, such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), have been a significant contributing factor to a global decline in HIV transmission. PrEP has been available through the NHS in Wales since 2017. However, access is exclusively via sexual health clinics, and those accessing PrEP do not reflect those being diagnosed with HIV. Widening access beyond sexual health clinics may be one approach to encourage more equitable uptake, and there is growing interest in offering PrEP services in community pharmacies. We, therefore, aimed to explore the acceptability of PrEP services being delivered through community pharmacies among prospective service users.METHODS: We conducted a qualitative interview study of people living in Wales who either (i) currently access, (ii) previously accessed or are (iii) considering accessing PrEP via a sexual health clinic. Participants were recruited via community networks, and interviews were conducted virtually. Our topic guide was informed by Levesque's conceptual framework of access to healthcare, and we used reflexive thematic analysis.RESULTS: We interviewed 24 participants and included data from 20 in the analysis. Four themes were generated: experiences of accessing PrEP via sexual health clinics, the prospect of PrEP access via community pharmacies, other community settings in which PrEP may be accessed and concerns around integrated healthcare and healthcare data.CONCLUSION: PrEP access via community pharmacy is likely to be an acceptable option for people. There are uncertainties surrounding what a PrEP service would look like in a community pharmacy setting, and this would need clarifying to prospective users to increase the salience of access.PATIENT AND PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: A team-based approach was taken for developing the topic guide and agreeing on the codes for this study. This included people with lived experience of accessing PrEP in Wales.</p
Active Learning with Gaussian Process Regression and Physical Models for Robust SNR Estimation
Full text linkWe demonstrate improved performance using active learning for both GPRand hybrid models to predict SNR using experimental data from a 15-channel WDMsystem over 1000km. Physical model interpreted GPR agrees with interpretingmeasured dat
Instrumenting(s): Accounting a Series of Repetitive Beats
Full text linkThis Visual Law article accounts an event “A Royal Dis-Sent –Re-Writing and Re-Imagining a Series of Repetitive Beats CJA1994” held at House of Annetta, on London’s Brick Lane, onSunday 3 November 2024. On that day it was 30 years sincethe notorious Criminal Justice and Public Order Act (CJA) 1994was given royal assent, illegalizing raves, banning music that“includes sounds wholly or predominantly characterized by theemission of a succession of repetitive beats” (section 63(1)(B)).Discussions as to the nature of sound and law are unravelled,considering prohibition, nomadism, repetition and propertyconcerning the connections found between law, music andaesthetics that the CJA 1994 and the workshop highlighted.The summary relays the work of event organizers Dr DanielHignell-Tully and Dr Lucy Finchett-Maddock under the guise oftransdisciplinary project “Instrumenting(s)”, investigating therelations between sound, property and law, and how we maybest understand the history of land within legalities and theirresistances via a combination of legal, scientific and artisticresearch through the development of a “geosocial instrument”. <br/
A continuous feast of bramble: Rubus fruticosus agg. is a key cross-seasonal dietary resource for a fallow deer population
Full text linkContext: Deer (Cervidae) populations are increasing in many global regions, leading to concerns about their impacts on temperate forests. Advancing evidence-based management requires a detailed understanding of the dietary habits of deer and how these are shaped by resource availability.Methodology: We studied the diet of fallow deer (Dama dama) in North Wales (United Kingdom), using faecal DNA metabarcoding. Samples were collected monthly from three woodlands during 2019–2021. Tree surveys and seasonal ground flora surveys were conducted in these woodlands and seven additional woodlands. Preference analyses were used to assess the consumption of plant taxa relative to their availability.Results: The fallow deer consumed high proportions of bramble (Rubus fruticosus agg.) across the seasons, especially in the winter months. Diet diversity was significantly lower in winter compared to the other seasons, suggesting that the deer were bulk foraging on a widely available, predictable resource to conserve energy during winter. Grasses did not form a major component of the diet in any season. The preference analysis showed that spatially clustered woody taxa (e.g. Betula sp., Corylus sp. and Fraxinus sp.) occurred less often than expected in the diet, while widespread woody species occurred in the diet more often than expected (e.g. Rosa sp., Prunus sp. and Quercus sp.).Practical implication: The expansion of deer populations in the United Kingdom has occurred alongside the recovery and maturation of degraded or planted forests since the middle of the 20th century. Despite reduced light availability in these closed-canopy forests and increased herbivory pressure, bramble has remained a dominant understory plant compared to other less herbivory-tolerant plant species. Perhaps as a consequence, bramble has become the winter survival resource for this fallow deer population, remaining a prominent dietary component throughout the year. With increasing disturbance from extreme weather and tree diseases leading to a more open canopy structure, bramble cover is set to increase in European forests, which could support further expansion of deer populations. As we work to expand tree cover and enhance forest resilience and biodiversity, we should seek to understand the dynamic interactions of increasing deer populations with rapidly changing treescapes
Bedrock modulates the elevational patterns of soil microbial communities
Full text linkElevational gradients are often used to reveal how soil microorganisms will respond to climate change. However, inconsistent microbial distribution patterns across different elevational transects have raised doubts about their practical applicability. We hypothesized that variations in bedrock, which influence soil physical and chemical properties, would explain these inconsistencies. We therefore investigated soil microbial communities (bacterial and fungal) along two adjacent elevational transects with different bedrocks (granite vs. slate) in a subtropical forest. Our findings reveal that soil microbial communities are shaped by complex interactions between bedrock type and environmental factors along elevational gradients. Bacterial biomass was higher on slate, whereas fungal biomass was higher on granite. On granite, both bacterial and fungal biomass increased with elevation, whereas divergent patterns were observed on slate, likely due to the distinct soil properties or combinations of properties influencing microbial biomass on each bedrock. Bedrock and elevation strongly influenced microbial beta-diversity, with beta-diversity on granite driven primarily by soil total phosphorus and moisture, and on slate by soil organic carbon and pH. In contrast, alpha-diversity was impacted less by bedrock and elevation, but its relationship with environmental factors varied markedly between bedrock types. Overall, our results highlight the critical influence of bedrock in determining soil microbial community structure along elevational gradients and their potential responses to climate change
Distinguishing microbially induced sedimentary structures from fluid-induced interfacial deformation structures (MISS versus FIDS)
Full text linkFluid-induced interfacial deformation structures (FIDS) are common in turbidite successions where they form in soft, cohesive substrates beneath sediment gravity flows, but their significance has only recently been recognised. Their range of forms and sizes encompasses most of the morphological types attributed to microbiallyinduced sedimentary structures (MISS) and the two have likely been conflated. Variants of FIDS include longitudinal ridges and furrows identical to the linear wrinkle marks assigned to MISS, and polygonal networks, a common form of MISS, together with polygonal and mamillated forms that have both MISS and FIDS representatives.Even the distinctive MISS form Kinneyia, is also found within the FIDS spectrum. Some FIDS may have also been assigned to Ediacaran taxa. Environmental context is important when distinguishing FIDS from MISS. Intertidal MISS occurrences are unlikely to be FIDS because the sediment gravity flows that produce the latter are unlikely to be found in such settings. However, MISS encountered in turbidite settings are likely to be FIDS. One of the few distinctions between MISS and FIDS occurs when textured surfaces are developed on the upper surfaces of sandstone beds and they are overlain by fine-grained sediments; in this case a microbial origin is likely
Integrating Systems Thinking and Behavioural Science
Full text linkTraditional approaches to changing health behaviours have primarily focused on education and raising awareness, assuming that increased knowledge leads to better decisions. However, evidence suggests these methods often fail to result in sustained behavioural change. The dual-process theory of decision-making highlights that much of our behaviour is driven by automatic, intuitive processes, which educational interventions typically overlook. Compounding this challenge, behavioural research is often conducted on small groups, making it difficult to scale insights into broader societal issues, where behaviour is influenced by complex, interconnected factors. This review advocates for integrating behavioural science with systems approaches (including systems thinking and approaches to complex adaptive systems) as a more effective approach to resolving complex societal issues, such as public health, sustainability, and social equity. Behavioural science provides insights into individual decision-making, while systems approaches offer ways of understanding, and working with, the dynamic interactions and feedback loops within complex systems. The review explores the commonalities and differences between these two approaches, highlighting areas where they complement one another. Design thinking is identified as a useful structure for bridging behavioural science and systems thinking, enabling a more holistic approach to problem-solving. Though some ideological challenges remain, the potential for creating more effective, scalable solutions is significant. By leveraging the strengths of both behavioural science and systems thinking, one can create more comprehensive strategies to address the “wicked problems” that shape societal health and well-being
IFRS 16 and firms’ risk in emerging markets: the impact of managerial overconfidence
Full text linkPurpose- The purpose of this study is to (i) investigate how IFRS 16 affects firms' risk in Egypt and (ii) examine the moderating role of managerial overconfidence on this relationship.Design/methodology/approach- This study uses data from the annual reports of 38 Egyptian firms from 2014 to 2022. This study employs the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) and the Three-Stage Least Squares (3SLS) as estimation techniques.Findings- The results show that IFRS 16 positively affect Egyptian firm risk, while managerial overconfidence reduces this positive effect.Originality/value- Grounded in agency theory, this study reveals novel empirical insights into the impact of IFRS 16 on firm risk, especially in the context of emerging markets. Utilizing behavioural decision theory and upper echelons theory, it examines the previously unexplored influence of managerial overconfidence on this relationship.Limitation- This study has some limitations. First, the sample size was relatively small. Second, our analysis did not incorporate other metrics of managerial overconfidence owing to the unavailability of relevant data in Egypt.Practical Implications- – This study assists stakeholders and regulators in realizing the implications of IFRS 16 on a firm’s risk, especially in emerging markets. Also, it enables managers to identify and assess lease-related risks more accurately to assist in developing appropriate risk mitigation strategies and optimizing lease-related decision-making processes. Furthermore, it aids in enhancing comprehension and knowledge of the interplay between managerial behaviour and firm outcomes.<br/
Does Board Diversity Affect Firm Performance in Kuwait?
Full text linkPurpose: This paper examines the consequences of board diversity in Kuwait. The objective is to measure the impact of gender, age, and national diversity on firm performance (FP).Design/methodology/approach: This work uses data from 103 non-financial Kuwaiti listed companies in the period from 2010 to 2017. The data was collected from secondary sources such as annual reports and S&P Capital IQ. Firm performance is measured by ROA, ROE and Tobin's Q. The independent variables are gender diversity, age diversity and nationality diversity.Findings: The findings show mixed results regarding gender, age, national diversity and firm performance.Practical Implications: By embracing board diversity, firms in Kuwait can enhance their corporate governance, drive innovation and improve overall performance, positioning themselves competitively in local and global markets. Thus, by prioritising and effectively managing board diversity in terms of gender, age, and nationality, firms can enhance their performance, drive innovation, and maintain competitiveness.Originality/Value: Board diversity is a relatively underexplored area in the context of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, including Kuwait. The originality and value of examining the impact of gender, age, and nationality diversity on firm performance in Kuwait are multifaceted, highlighting unique cultural, economic, and regulatory aspects